Machine for operating on welting



Deg. 8. 1925- 1.564.862 F. N. LA CHAPELLE MACHINE FOR OPERATING on wsurxns File April 15. 1921 e 3 SheetsSheet -1 Y I I v Dec. 8, 1925- 1,564,862

F. N. LA CHAPELLE mourns FOR prmwrme on wzm'me Filed April 5, 1921 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Dec. s, 1925. 1.564.862

F. N. LA CHAPELLE MACHINE FOR OPERATING 0N WELTIHG Filed April 15, 1921 3 Sheets-Sheet, 5

Patented Dec. 8, 1925.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFF-ICE.

FRED N. LA CHAPELLE, 0F BEVERLY, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO UNITEDv SHOE MACHINERY CORPORATION, OF PATERSON, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

Application filed April 15, 1921. Serial No. 461,558.

To all whom it may. concern:

Be it known that I, FRED N. LA CHAPELLE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Beverly, in the county of Essex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Machines for Operating on Welting; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to machines for operating on welting, and particularly to ma chines of the type known as welt beaters which operate on welting after it is attached to shoes.

In the manufacture of welted boots and shoes it is customary to beat out the welt after the welt has been secured to the upper and insole in order to cause itto lie flat in substantially the plane of the insole. The sidewise deflection of the welt in applying it to the toe of a shoe, particularly of a pointed toe shoe, causes this portion of the welt to turn or curl up, and in order for welt beating machines at present in common use to properly beat out the welt, it is usually necessary to provide the toe portion of the welt with a series of cuts or slashes in its under side to enable the outer edge thereof to stretch sufliciently during the beating out operation to bring it into the plane of the insole. It has been found, however, that in certain classes of work such cutting or slashing of the welt is objectionable as the slashes tend to weaken the welt.

An object of the present invention is to provide in a welt beating or other machine for operating on a welt preparatory to laying the outsole, improved means for operating on the welt in such a manner asto overcome the necessity of subjecting the welt to a slashing operation and without danger of marring the appearance or otherwise injuring the welt.

With this and other objects in view a feature of the present invention contemplates the provision in a machine for operating on welting of means for gripping spaced portions of the welt, and means working.

across the welt to stretch the outer edge portion of the part of the welt extendlng be tween said spaced portions. In the prethe welt beating devices.

ferred form of the invention themeans actng across the welt comprises a tool having its welt engaging surface inclined to the normal plane of the portion of the welt extehding between said gripped portions, the tool acting toward the inner edge of the, welt in such a manner as to stretch the outer edge portion of the welt by forcing it out of its normal plane. lVith this construction it will be apparent that the required stretching of the welt may be effectively accomplished without subjecting the welt to a slashing operation and without danger of marring the appearance or otherwise injuring the welt. This feature of the invention in its broader aspects obviously is not limited to use in a welt beating machine as it may be used in other machines for operating on welting either before or after the welt is attached ,to the upper and insole of a Goodyear welt shoe or to the sole of a McKay shoe. The machine illustrated in the drawings, which is a welt beating machine, is provlded with a welt beating hammer and an anvil which are so constructed and arranged and the'hammer is operated in such a manner that when the hammer is brought down on the welt, it cooperates with the anvil to grip spaced portions of the welt and to hold these portions of the welt in a fixed plane during the movement of the first in the art to thus accomplish this result and, accordingly, it is considered that another feature of the present invention consists in the provision in a welt beating machine ofany suitable means for stretching the outer edge portion of a welt independently of the beating movement of In this connec tion it is also to be noted that applicant is the first in the art to provide means for stretching the outer edge portion of one part of a welt lengthwise comprising devices acting to grip another part of the welt and' tohold it in a fixed plane during the stretching operation and, accordingly, itis considered that the provision of a. construction for thus accomplishing the desired result in this manner constitutes another feature of the invention which, in its broader aspects, is not limited to a welt beating machine.

Other features of the invention consist in certain constructions, arrangements and combinations of parts hereafter described and claimed, the advantages of which will be obvious to those skilled in the art.

The several features of the invention will be clearly understood from the following description and accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a right side elevation of the upper portion of a welt beating machine em bodying the features in their preferred form with the casing of the machine shown in section; Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 22 of Fig. 1; 3 is a sec tional View taken substantially on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a detail side elevation, partly in section, of portions of the op- .erating instrumentalities of the machine shown acting on the welt of a shoe; Fig. 5 1S 7 a vertical sectional view,v partly in elevation,

taken on the line '55 of Fig. 4; and Fig. 6.

is a sectional plan view taken on the line 66 of Fig. 4.

The machine illustrated in the drawings is provided with an anvil 2 and a vertically reciprocating hammer 4. The anvil 2 is supported on a bracket 6 projecting from the machine frameand is secured to the bracket by a bolt 8 screw-threaded into the anvil, the bolt extending through a slot in the bracket to provide for longitudinal adjustment of the anvil;

The hammer 4 is formed on the lower end of the usual downwardly spring pressed plunger 10 mounted in the forward end of an oscillating lever 12. The lever 12 is fulcrumed ona stud 14 secured to a side ofthe casing. The lever is oscillated to actuate the hammer by means of a cam 16 engaging the vertical side walls of a recess 18 in the lever 12. The cam 16 is formed on the driving shaft 20 having its ends extended through and journaled in suitable bearingsin the vertical sides of the casing.

The hammer is actuated to cooperate with the anvil to beat out the welt in the usual manner while operating on the portions of the welt extending about the sides of the shoe, but when the toe portion of the welt is reached a reciprocating tool 22 is thrown into operation by the operator to cooperate with the hammer and anvil to stretch the outer edge portion of the welt longitudinally. The tool 22 acts on the welt while the hammer is in engagement with the welt, and in order to give the tool suflicient time to operate effectively the cam 16 for actuating the hammer is so shaped that the hammer is held in engagement with the welt to coop-' erate with the anvil to grip the welt during substai'itially a third of one revolution of the driving shaft 20. Since there is no movement of the hammer lever 12 during t is period, the welt is held under unvarying pressure. The stretching tool 22 is arranged in sliding engagement with the face of the anvil and is convex wedge-shaped as shown in the drawings which enables it to be readily inserted beneath the welt during its forward movement, the hammer being provided with a cavity corresponding substantially in shape to the tool to permit such movement of the tool. It will be apparent that as the portions of the working face of the hammer adjacent the longitudinal sides of the cavity cooperate with the anvil to grip spaced portions of the welt during the movement of the tool into and out of engagement with the under side of the welt, the outer edge portion of the part of the welt engaged by the tool will be stretched and forced up into the cavity in the hammer, and thatupon the next welt beating movement of the hammer, this stretched portion of the welt will be beaten or flattened out into the plane of the insole.

The stretching tool 22 is provided With a rearwardly extending cylindrical shank 24 mounted to slide in a horizontal bearing 26 on the machine frame. The tool 22 is actuated as above described by a reciprocating plunger 28 extending into an axial bore 30 in the shank of the tool. .A coil spring 32 is interposed between the forward end of the rod 28 and the forward end wall of the axial bore 30, and a pin 34 extends through a horizontal slot 36 in the plunger rod 28 and is secured at its ends to the shank of the tool. l Vith this construction it will be apparent that the plunger rod during its forward movement will act through the coil spring 32 to advance the stretching tool into operative engagement with the welt and upon the retracting movement of the plunger rod 28 the forward end wall of the slot 36 in the rod will en age the pin 34 to retract the tool. The yielding connection comprising the coil spring between the plunger rod 28 and the stretching tool permits the tool to accommodate itself to different thicknesses of welting. The plunger rod 28 is actuated by means of an oscillating lever 38 pivoted on a stud 40 se cured to a side ofthe casing. The connection between the plunger rod and the oscillating lever 38 comprises a link 42 having one end pivotally connected with the rear end of the rod and its other end pivotally connected with a block 44 mounted to slide in an arcuate slot or groove 46 in a side of the oscillating lever, The groove 46 is concentric with the pivotal connection between the link 42 and the plunger rod 28 when the plunger rod and oscillating lever are in their retracted positions as shown in Fig. 1. With this construction it will be apparent that when the link 42 is positioned so that its pivotal connection with the block 44 is in alinement with the pivot of the oscillating lever, no movement will be imparted to the plunger rod 28 and that upon moving the link 42 toward the lower end of the slot 46 a reciprocating movement will be imparted to the plunger rod 28 to an extent dependent upon the position to which the link is moved. The position of the link 42 is capable of being thus controlled by the operator to throw the stretching tool 22 into and out of operation, and to vary the extent of the reciprocating movement imparted to the tool to vary the stretching action of the tool by means of a treadle 'rod 46 connected with a treadle mechanism at the base of the machine. The treadle rod 46 extends through a vertical bearing 48 on a side of the casing, and its upper end is pivotally connected with a block 50 mounted to slide on the link 42 between gibs 52. When the treadle rod 46 is released a coil spring 54 connected with the rod acts to position the link so as to bring its pivotal connection with the block 44 into alinement with the pivot of the oscillating lever, such positioning of the link being determined by the engagement of the block 44 with a stop pin 56 secured to the oscillating lever, and upon depressing the treadle rod 46 the link 42 is positioned to throw the stretching tool 22 into operation this movement of the link being limited by the engagement of the block 44 with a stop pin 58 secured to the oscillating lever.

The oscillating lever 38 is actuated'by the driving shaft 20. The connection between the driving shaft and the lever 38 comprises a crank 60 formed on the driving shaft on which crank a block 62 is pivotally mounted, which is in sliding engagement with oppositely disposed side walls of a recess 64 in the forward end of the oscillating lever.

The several features of the invention having been indicated and a machine embodying the features in their preferred form having been specifically described, what is claimed is 1. A welt beating machine having, in combination, an anvil, a reciprocating hammer to cooperate with the anvil to beat out a welt, and means moved into engagement with the welt while the hammer is, in engagement with the welt to stretch the outer edge portion of the welt.

2. A welt beating machine having, in combination, an anvil, a reciprocating hammer to cooperate therewith to beatout a welt, and means comprising a tool operated inwardly of the welt in timed relation to the han'uner to stretch the outer edge portion of the, welt more than the inner portion.

3. A welt beating machine having, in con inuation, a fixed anvil, a reciprocating hammer to cooperate therewith to beat out a welt, and a wedge-shaped tool in sliding engagement with the working face of the anvil capable of being inserted between the anvil and the welt while the hammer is in engagement with the welt to stretch the outer edge portion of the welt, and power operated means for thus actuating the tool.

4. A welt beating machine having, in combination, an anvil, a reciprocating hammer cooperating therewith to beat out a welt, means comprising a reciprocating tool acting in timed relation with the hammer to cooperate with the hammer and anvil to stretch the outer edge portion of the welt lengthwise more-than the inner portion, and

means for thus actuating the tool independently of the actuation of the hammer.

5. A welt beating machine having, in combination, an anvil, a reciprocating hammer to cooperate therewith to beat out a welt, and means comprising atool actuated inwardly of the shoe over the face of the anvil after the hammer has been brought into engagement with the welt to stretch the outer edge portion of the welt.

6. A welt beating machine having, in combinatioman. anvil, a reciprocating hammer cooperating therewith to beat out a welt, said hammer being provided with a cavity in its working face, and means comprising a tool actuated after the welt is engaged by the hammer and anvil'to force the outer' bination, an anvil, a reciprocating hammer to cooperate with the anvil to beat out a welt, and means operated independently of the hammer to stretch the outer edge portion of the welt lengthwise while the welt is en gaged by the hammer and anvil.

8. A machine for operating on welting having, in combination, meansfor gripping spaced portions of the welt, and a convex tool engaging one side of the welt and working across the welt between said spaced portions to stretch the outer edge portion of the welt.

9. A machine for operating on welting having, in combination, means for gripping spaced portions of, the welt, and a convex wedge-shaped tool engaging one side of the welt and working across the welt between said spaced portions while the welt is thusgripped to stretch the outer edge portion of the welt.

10. A welt beating machine having, in-

'ing connections between the shaft and tool for actuating the to'oi.

11. A machine for operating on welting having, in combination, a work support, means cooperating therewith to grip spaced portions of the welt, means comprising a tool acting on the welt between said spaced portions to stretch the outer edge portion of the welt, a shaft, and yielding connections between the shaft and tool for actuating the tool. 7

12. A welt beating machine having, in combination, an anvil, a reciprocating hammer to cooperate therewith to beat out a welt, means comprising a reciprocating tooi acting in timed relation to the hammer to cooperate with the hammer and anvil to stretch the outer edge portion of the weit, and power operated means under the controlot' the operator for thus actuating the tool.

13. A welt beating machine having, in combination, an anvil, a reciprocating hammer cooperating therewith to beat out a welt, means comprising a reciprocating tool acting in timed relation to the hammer to cooperate with the hammer and anvil to stretch the outer edge portion of the welt, and power operated means for thus actuating the tool having provision for adjustment by the operator during the operation of the machine to vary the extent of movement imparted to the tool.

14.-.-A welt beating machine having, in

combination, an anvil, a hammer cooperating therewith to beat out awelt, means comprising a reciprocating tool acting in timed relation with the hammer to cooperate with the hammer and anvil to stretch the outer edge portion of the welt, means for actuating the tool comprising an oscillating lever, and connections hetween the oscillating lever and the tool having provision for adjustment to vary the amount of movement imparted to the tool. J

15. A welt beating machine having, in combination, an anvil, a hammer c0operating therewith to beat out a welt, means comprising a reciprocating tool acti ng in timed relation with the hammer to cooperate with the hammer and anvil to stretch the outer edge portion of the welt, means for actuating the tool comprising an oscillating lever, and connections between the oscillating lever and the tool capable of being c'ontrol ledby the operator to throw the tool into and out of operation.

16. A machine for operating on welting having, in combination, means for stretching the outer edge portion of one part of a welt lengthwise and devices operated independently of the stretching means to grip another part of the welt and to hold it in a fixed plane during the stretching operation.

17. A welt beating machine having, in

menses combination, welt heating devices, and means acting independently of the welt beating movement of said devices to stretch the outer edge portion of the welt lengthwise.

18 A machine for operating on welting having, in combination, welt beating devices, and means operated independently of said devices while the weit beating devices are in engagement with the welt to stretch the outer edge portion oi? the welt lengthwise.

19. A machine for operating on welting having, in combination, means for gripping spaced portions of the wclt, tan-d tapered means having a transversely curved welt engaging fac'e working across the welt to stretch outer edge portion of the part of the welt extending between said spaced portions.

20 A machine for operating on welting having, in combination, means for gripping spaced portions of the welt, and means for stretching the outer edge portion of the part or the welt extending between said spaced portions comprising .a tool working across the welt having its welt engaging surface transversely curved and inclined to the nor mai plane of the welt.

:21. A machine for operating on welting having, in eombination, means for gripping spaced portions of the welt, a tool having a welt engaging surface inclined to the normal pl ne of the welt, and power means for ac ti iating the tool independently of the actuation of the gripping means to stretch the outer edge portion of the part of the welt extending between said spaced portions.

22. In a machine for operating upon welts, means for flattening a portion of the welt, means power operated while the flattening means is in engagement with the welt to move the edge of the flattened portion heightwise of the welt to stretch the welt lengthwise, and manually controlled means for varying the amount of movement im parted to the stretching means.

23. In a machine for operatin upon welts attached to shoes, contin-uou-sy operated means for beating successive increments of the welt, means arranged for power operation each time the beating means is in contact with the welt to stretch the outer edge of the welt, more than the rest of the welt, and means for discontinuing the action of the stretching means without affecting the operation of the heating means.

24:. In a machine for operating upon welts attached to shoes, means for flattening and holding under unvarying pressure portions of the attached margin of the welt, and means operated while said portions are held flat to bend the free margin oft the welt.

, 25. In a machine for operating upon welts attached to shoes, means for holding successive spaced increments of a welt in flattened condition under substantially nnvarying pressure, and means acting only after the holding means has engaged the welt for bending the free margin of the welt between said increments transversely of the plane of the welt while said pressure is maintained.

26. In a machine for operating upon welts attached to shoes, the combination of means for holding successive spaced increments of the welt in flattened condition under substantially unvarying pressure, and means operated subsequently to the holding means in timed relation thereto for stretching the margin of the welt between the welt increments lengthwise of its edge while the increments are so held.

27. A welt beating machine having, in combination, an anvil, a shaft, a reciprocating hammer to co-operate with the anvil in beating a welt, means for operating the hammer from the shaft, a tool between the anvil and hammer operated at each stroke of the hammer to stretch the outer edge portion of the welt lengthwise, and means for operating the tool from said shaft independently of the means for operating the hammer.

28. In a machine for operating upon welts, means for applying substantially unvarying pressure to successive spaced increments of the welt simultaneously, and means actuated in the same cycle and after said pressure is applied for subjecting the intermediate portion of the welt to a bending act-ion.

29. In a machine for operating upon welts, synchronously operating welt flattening means and welt edge stretching means, and separate mechanisms for automatically operating each of said means in each cycle to impart a flattening and an edge stretching impulse to each of a series of successive increments of a welt. I

30. In a machine for operating upon welts, members to engage opposite sides of a welt, and separate mechanisms for operating each of said members synchronously in each cycle to operate on successive increments of the welt to bend each increment transversely to stretch the edge of the welt lengthwise.

31. In a machine for operating upon welts, means to grasp and hold spaced portions of a welt under substantially unvarying pressure, and means operating synchronously therewith and including a stretching device operated inwardly of the welt to engage that part of a welt between said spaced portions while they are so held to impart a stretching impulse to the Welt.

32. In a machine for operating upon shoes, flattening means including co-operating, mechanically actuated pounding members, and auxiliary means mechanically operated in-, wardly of the shoe synchronously with said pounding members by mechanism independent of the mechanism for operating the pounding means to impart a stretching impulse for each pounding impulse imparted by said members.

FRED N. LA CHAPELLE. 

